Course-Embedded Assignment Reflection for EDLD 5366


Self–Assessment

This class brought out a side of creativity I didn’t know I had. It was very inspiring because I had never really thought about contrast, repetition, alignment, and proximity (CRAP) while creating projects such as newsletters, web sites, brochures, flyers, etc. Using these principles assisted with creating a product that is not only informational but pleasing to the eye. The graphics of the communication, developed over 5 millennia of human history, show us how the brain recognizes and responds to written language (Yearwood, 2009). Graphics continue to evolve and it’s exciting to see how the level of creativity in my classroom has evolved as well.

Learn as a Learner
I have created newsletters in the past but now I seek to us the elements of CRAP to create eye catching graphics within newsletters. The corporate newsletter is one of the most valuable of the communica­tion tools (Yearwood, 2009). The students and I created a brochure about the Leadership Officers’ Training Corps (LOTC) class for mass production to inform the parents about the program. We included pictures of the current students, school colors, logos, extracurricular activities with action photos, and information about the curriculum. I received parental consent before using the students’ photos and the principal approved the brochure before I issued it to the parents. The LOTC official logo was also created by my students and me to be used on items such as t-shirts, flyers, brochures, presentations, letters, etc. Rubrics are a great way to assist the students with the assignment and give them expectations of their grade earned.

Lifelong Learning Skills

The U.S. Army JROTC program curricula has given me the opportunity to use newsletters, scrapbooks, logos, digital cameras, pictures, brochures, web sites, flyers, etc., within my class. This class has taught me how to perfect these tools in the classroom. I use the technique of branding to sell the subject that I teach. It’s not just a class it’s an organization with six different extracurricular activities. I compete with athletics, band and other clubs for student participation and dedication. Branding is a great way to attract their attention by using the logo we created for LOTC. “A logo can invigorate a company’s image or squander its brand equity”, (Ellis & Glasser, 2009). We affix the logo to items such as my business cards, t-shirts, parade and information banners, student folders, pens, posters, and brochures. The students love anything that is branded with the Alice Johnson Junior High School LOTC Hornet. I am sharing this concept with my colleagues because they can be creative in core classes as well by creating clubs and informational items to sell the idea to students and parents.


References
Yearwood, John C. (2009). Graphic Communication in Context,
a brief overview of the history of writing. Lamar University, Beaumont, TX, USA:
Desktop Publishing. P12

Yearwood, John C. (2009). The Newsletter. Lamar University, Beaumont, TX, USA:
Desktop Publishing. P1


Ellis, Blake & Glasser, Josh, contributors (2009). Fortune: What’s in a new logo?

http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2009/fortune/0908/gallery.new_logos_redesigns.f
ortune/index.html




Embedded Course Assignments